The key to success for any manufacturer is to give the consumer a product that meets or exceeds their expectations at fair price points. This is something that Joe Roebuck, owner of SCCY Firearms, discovered early on. And a reality that remains true throughout the SCCY product line with pistols like the everyday carry CPX-2 GEN3 RDR.
The SCCY CPX-2 GEN3 RDR
In its almost 20 years of business, SCCY has earned the reputation of building economical pistols that possess the accuracy and reliability needed for serious concealed carry use. With blue-collar pricing, these pistols have a great deal of appeal to first-time firearm buyers and those on tight budgets.
Another trait of successful businesses is they don’t rest on their laurels. With that in mind, Roebuck continues to refine and enhance SCCY’s popular CPX line of semi-auto pistols.
Latest Gen of the SCCY CPX-2
At the 2022 SHOT Show, SCCY debuted their new CPX-2 GEN3 pistol—the latest evolution of an already popular pistol. The CPX-2 is a hammer-fired, semi-automatic 9mm pistol with a 10+1 capacity.
None of that has changed, but SCCY—always mindful of consumer requests and market trends—made some changes to better give the end-user more gun for the money.
I received a sample of the new CPX-2 Red Dot Ready (RDR) for evaluation. The new GEN3 guns have a reconfigured slide profile with a flat top. Correspondingly, they are using a rear sight dovetail compatible with Glock 43 sights.
Optic-sighted carry guns have become very popular in the last couple of years, and the GEN3 CPX-2 has a slide machined for a miniature red dot. SCCY uses the popular Shield RMSC cut, and quite a few brands of micro red dots are compatible. For those who prefer iron sights over an optic, there is a cover plate to hide the cut.
SCCY also redesigned the polymer grip by removing the frontstrap finger grooves and reducing the grip circumference. As a result, the gun is more user-friendly for those with smaller hands.
Additionally, SCCY also reconfigured the gun for a shorter trigger pull reach, again to aid those with smaller hands. The trigger is now made from machined aluminum. For attaching a tactical light and/or laser, SCCY added a small piece of Picatinny rail to the gun’s dust cover.
Reliability Is Built Into Every SCCY
SCCY pistols have always been known for their reliability. And the CPX-2 was designed to feed rounds from the magazine at a very shallow angle to minimize feed problems.
The stainless barrels are machined from bar stock and possess an integral feed ramp. SCCY also machines the slide from stainless steel. Our test sample’s slide and two included 10-round magazines are blackened with a nitride process.
On the left side of the slide, the legend Roebuck Quad Lock is laser engraved, and I went to SCCY’s website to learn about it. Joe Roebuck is the founder of SCCY and the originator of the Quad Lock system.
The CPX-2, as well as other SCCY pistols, fire from a locked breech. Instead of a swinging link, like on the 1911, SCCY pistols use a barrel with an oblong-shaped lug under the barrel. The disassembly pin goes through the oblong cut, and this pulls the rear end of the barrel down. This allows the slide to reciprocate during the firing sequence.
When in battery, the barrel’s breech block locks solidly into the slide with an upward pressure that, correspondingly, forces the muzzle of the barrel downward in such a way that the barrel cannot be moved side to side or up and down. This system results in remarkable consistency and precision.
SCCY uses a double-action-only trigger on the CPX-2, and it possesses a long, almost .75-inch trigger pull. Given this gun’s economical price, I think the gun will appeal mostly to those new to firearms and concealed carry.
The longer trigger pull affords an extra degree of safety. In other words, it takes a deliberate pull of the trigger for the gun to fire. In fact, my test sample has a 9 pound trigger pull.
Red-Dot Ready
Before taking the gun out for my range session, I fitted a Riton X3 Tactix Micro Pistol Red Dot sight (MPRD) to the CPX-2’s slide. It took just a few seconds to install and mounted directly to the slide without any adapters or plates.
The X3 Tactix MPRD features a 3.5-MOA dot with ten different brightness levels. It is powered by a common CR2032 battery, and Riton claims one of these cheap and readily available batteries can provide up to 50,000 hours of life. The optic weighs just six-tenths of an ounce, uses premium Japanese glass, and also boasts a lifetime warranty!
The Riton MPRD made all the difference. It allowed me to keep the red dot centered on the black bullseye with the pistol’s dust cover resting on my Millett BenchMaster, as I coaxed the trigger through its long pull.
I tried the CPX-2 with three common range ammunitions and one +P defense load. They all proved 100% reliable, and every group was under 1.5 inches at 15 yards.
Shooting The CPX-2 GEN3
SCCY’s manual states that +P cartridges should be used on a limited basis. This is because it creates higher chamber pressures than standard ammunition. It also warns never to fire more than 50 rounds of +P per range session.
Whichever ammunition you decide to carry in your CPX-2, test it for function and to make sure that it shoots to point of aim. If it’s one of the hotter defense loads, limit its use and save some wear and tear on your gun. Not to mention your wallet.
I also had the opportunity to shoot some steel targets during my desert outing with the CPX-2 GEN3. While I am used to shorter and crisper single-action and striker triggers, I found that I could adapt reasonably well to the gun’s longer trigger pull.
I found myself staging the trigger, almost to the point of the hammer falling as the red dot settled back on the target. Using this method, I was able to fire the gun with reasonable speed and got all of my hits.
One of the things that have made me a fan of the SCCY pistols is that even though they are subcompacts, they are not so small that you can’t fire them effectively. The CPX-2’s magazine features a finger rest base pad that allows me to shoot with three fingers on the frontstrap for an uncompromised shooting grip.
Shooters can also engage the magazine release without shifting their grip. Its slide-hold-open device is steel but is over-molded with polymer. It too can be engaged without changing the grip or can be easily engaged by the shooter’s support hand.
Final Thoughts About the CPX-2 GEN3
Disassembly of the CPX-2 is quick and easy. First, remove the magazine and clear the chamber. After ensuring the gun is completely unloaded, lock the slide to the rear by pushing up on the slide stop.
Now use the rim of a cartridge or small screwdriver to engage the slot in the disassembly pin and remove it from the left slide of the frame. The slide and barrel assembly can now slide forward off the frame. The recoil spring guide with dual recoil springs can now be removed before the barrel is separated from the slide.
Reassembly is in reverse order. Once the barrel and slide assembly are re-installed on the frame rails, lock the slide in its rearward position and then manually pull the barrel forward before reinstalling the disassembly pin.
SCCY offers the CPX-2 GEN3 with either a black or natural stainless steel color slide and frames in 11 different colors. They also offer basically the same gun with an ambidextrous frame-mounted thumb safety. Its model designation is the CPX-1 GEN3 and can be had with or without the Red Dot Ready (RDR) optics slide cut.
In terms of firearms, it isn’t very often that we feel like we got more than we paid for. But SCCY’s new CPX-2 GEN3 retails for just $340. This will put its real-world pricing around three Benjamins, and that makes it a lot of gun for the money!
For more information on SCCY’s value-packed pistols, visit their website at SCCY.com.
SCCY CPX-2 9mm GEN3 RDR Specs
Caliber: 9mm
Barrel: 3.1 inches
Overall Length: 6 inches
Weight: 15 ounces (empty)
Grips: Zytel black polymer
Sights: Drift-adjustable rear, fixed front
Action: DAO
Finish: Black
Capacity: 10+1
MSRP: $360 (Red Dot Ready)
This article was originally published in the Personal Defense World August/September 2022 issue. Subscription is available in print and digital editions at OutdoorGroupStore.com. Or call 1-800-284-5668, or email subscriptions@athlonmediagroup.com.
